The Orphans’ Hope Project

Imagine what it would be like if you were very poor.  Now imagine what it would be like as a child to be poor and to have no family to care for you.  This is the plight of many children, a heart breaking reality that is ever present in a country as impoverished as Nicaragua.  Children can lose their parents to death, disease and accident but it is also possible, and very common for children to be abandoned simply because their parents cannot afford to feed or care for them.

The Orphans’ Hope Project works with four disadvantaged orphanages in Nicaragua.  Two are in or near Managua, the capitol city.  Two others are located in the rural mountainous areas.  These orphanages are run by devoted and loving Nuns who care for the children who would otherwise live on the streets.  But these orphanages are also poor and at times are not able to provide even the most basic of needs, regular meals for the children.

While the Mission of Hope has supported and assisted El Crucero orphanage since 1998, we started the OHP program in 2010 to specifically respond in expanded detail to the need of these facilities.  With donations from individual sponsors, we are able to help provide regular and healthy food such as meat, vegetables, cheese, eggs and milk; options otherwise not available.  We also assist with basic medical needs, such as vitamins and parasite medicine and educational materials including the required school uniforms.  All children in the OHP attend school in a safe environment. After completion of secondary (high) school, the children are encouraged to attend university or vocational training through our OHP University – OHP U – program, a follow-on to the OHP program.  This essential continuation of education helps students learn skills that allow them to provide for themselves and their families when they are grown, effectively breaking the vicious cycle of poverty.

OHP sponsorship is $300 per year.

Each sponsor receives a history and picture of their sponsored child if available.  We encourage communication as the children especially love to receive letters and pictures from their “Madrina” (Godmother) and “Padrino” (Godfather), the names the children have given to their sponsors.  It is a comfort for them to know that someone cares about what happens to them, how they live and how they will grow up.

OHP also helping HIV+ children

We also have 100 HIV+ children in the OHP program. All of these children are infected with the HIV virus and not only do they suffer with this terrible illness but they also bear the stigma and alienation associated with HIV/AIDS in many parts of the world. In a cruel twist of fate, they endure the consequences of actions totally out of their control. Some of the children go to school; some are too sick or too poor to attend. Many of the children live with foster families as their own are unable to take care of them.

We are working with Caritas de Managua an organization with a presence in Nicaragua that works directly with the children and their families. Through Caritas de Mangua, aid is provided in the form of key medicines especially for respiratory and symptomatic illness associated with HIV, education, clothing and basic food such as rice, beans and cooking oil. Your sponsorship also covers any urgent needs of the child, siblings or family.

More help is needed…

We could not do what we have done without our sponsors; and we continue to look for additional sponsors to help us help the children.

While these sponsorships do not solve all of the problems and challenges that the children face now and in the future, your help WILL give them hope.  You can make a difference in a child’s life.

To sign up to sponsor an orphaned child, click here, and ACH Authorization Form. For more information on how to become a sponsor or how you can help, email info@ncmissionofhope.org